Posted on January 24, 2018 

There is nothing easy about going through a wrongful death claim. When you have lost a loved one, you need time to recover and time to think about how you want to bring your claim and all of the elements involved with these complicated and stressful cases. What if your loved one’s death was due to the negligent, reckless, or criminal actions of another person? What if a government agency contributed to the accident that took the life of your loved one?

Arizona and Wrongful Death 

wrongful death claim Arizona oversees wrongful death laws under their Tort Claims Act, which can be found in the Arizona Revised Statutes section 12-820, dictating many rules on when someone can file a claim against the government. These statutes oversee when a concept known as “sovereign immunity” plays a role in government cases, which is a very old concept that protects the government from certain lawsuits and situations. Luckily, there are many cases where this immunity does not play a role, especially when gross negligence has taken place and caused the death of another.

However, you should note that, in cases where the government has caused your loved one’s accident, you have strict time limits. This is why you should always have the help of an experienced attorney on your side, because you don’t want to meet certain deadlines and find out that it is too late to file your claim. You must file to notify the government that a lawsuit is in order and that there are potential losses. This time limit could be anywhere from 30-90 days, so you have to act quickly before you are barred from filing at all.

Proving Your Claim to Receive Damages 

Wrongful death suits are a lot like personal injury lawsuits from a legal standpoint. They still require you to show a duty of care between defendant and victim, a breach in that duty, the death that was caused by the breach, and that a claimant suffered damages. If you are a direct relative or loved one to the deceased, these damages could encompass many different aspects. It may cover things like lost future income that the deceased would have provided, loss of companionship, pain and suffering, and medical bill payments and funeral expenses that the family cannot care for on their own.

The government has many protections, which is why you often see these cases becoming very complicated. The loss of your loved one is an important matter to us and we want to help you through every step in the process. At the Accident Law Group, we care about your case. Call us today at 602-262-4254 to find out how we can help you.

Sources

https://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Wrongful+death+claim